Get a flaming cake out and take a deep breath, party people, because it’s time to feel old: The Universal Product Code was first put into use only 40 years ago, when a $0.67 10-pack of Wrigley’s gum was scanned by a cashier at an Ohio grocery store on June 26, 1974. Yes, bar codes have only been on the things we buy for 40 years. [More]

Stickybits is a social network that combines your phone’s camera, a web connection, and UPCs to leave virtual notes and images scattered all around you like invisible sticky notes. The important question, as always, is can it be used to sell stuff? Coca-Cola, Pepsi, Campbell’s, Frito-Lay, and Ben & Jerry are all planning to find out in social media campaigns this summer, reports Brandweek.

If you own a G1 phone from T-Mobile, Google has added a special barcode scanning feature to its Product Search page just for you. Yeah, you’ve already got other barcode scanning apps, but this one integrates with Google’s search functionality so you can scan and see product search results in Google immediately. [Phandroid]

You know you can get a good deal on a CompUSA product if there is a “D” or a “N” on the price sign. Most have have an A – before the UPC number.. but a CompUSA worker tells us that for anything with a D or a N…